What’s better than an MP3 player? A camouflaged player, of course.  The funky-looking design has been released as part of Sony’s new Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Walkman also known as the NWZ-W252.

The player features a 2GB storage capacity with an admirable 11 hours of playback, but this player is all about the charge time. After just 3 minutes of charging, the player will offer 90 minutes of audio playback. All of these features are combined with the player’s water resistance making it a good companion for outdoor exercise on a rainy day or those more-sweaty-than-usual gym sessions.

The player is set for a June release date to coincide with release of the upcoming PSP game Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker. In fact, the player comes bundled with the video game’s title track and an official MGS stamp.

[via Blast]

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Reminiscent of the Valentine’s edition of the Zune HD, special editions of the Sony S740 and S640 are being released to the Japanese public. The product of a team-up between Sony and Disney, Mickey and Minnie Mouse will now be gracing both versions of Sony’s newest MP3 Players.

The S640 and S740 can be chosen in a wide variety of colors with an engraving of one of the three designs featuring Mickey, Minnie, or the couple together. For most of us, investing in this special-edition player would be a taboo, yet if you’re into Hello Kitty then the S640/S740 special-edition might be right up your alley.

[via Engadget]

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The new Sony UX series of voice recorders which double as MP3 players have been released to the public.  The new collection comes in three flavors consisting of the UX200, UX300, and UX300F.

The 3-in-1 players (USB storage, MP3 Player, and Voice Recorder) are capable of 15 hours worth of continuous recording (recording in MP3 format).

The UX200 has 2GB of flash memory or 535 hours of recording while the UX300 and 300F have 4GB of flash memory or 1,000 hours worth of recording with the 300F having an FM radio. The gadget comes bundled with a carrying pouch, rechargeable battery, stereo headphones, and USB cable.

Enough of the verbal diarrhea, check out the video promotion from Sony Europe…after the jump.

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After announcing an Asian Pacific release, Sony are yet to announce a U.S. release of the Sony S740. Sure those Canadians have been fortunate enough to get their hands on Sony’s newest player, but why leave out the Americans?

Fear not, there is still speculation of a US release (check out a recent article on SoftSailor).

A 2-part video has emerged of the player. It’s a hands-on demonstration of the S740 in action. We get to see the player in all its splendor. Who can forget its attractive, ultraslim design, 2 inch QVGA LCD, noise reduction technology, bass boost with clear stereo, video out, and admirable codec support?

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Taking off the rear panel of the device, we get a good look at the battery – 33 hours of audio or 9 hours of video on a single charge.  As you’ll see, the battery manages to account for 80% of the rear surface area of the player. It’s rather interesting to note that the rear frame is not plastic as found in other players like the iAudio 9.

If we pop the battery out, we get a good opportunity to look at the PCB circuit board of the player.

The big surprise is the screen. Sony, notorious for its LCD TVs and the like, uses a Samsung OLED screen. Take note of the screen ribbon cable on the left side.

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The consumer information powerhouse that is which.co.uk has published a video review comparing the Sony S540 and Sony E440. With previously having received flattering reviews, it’s not too surprising that even Ben Stevens is a fan.

He does have a few gripes. Ben states that the S540 has some “tinny” sounding speakers; although, he does retract his statement informing us that the speakers are ideal for talk radio or listening to music clips in your collection. Lastly, both players feature an FM-tuner, but the tuners lack RDS. This means that unless you know the frequency of the radio station you’re looking for, you will have to cycle through the stations until the radio station is announced.

Don’t forget to checkout our previous articles on the E440 and the S540 for further in-depth information about the players.

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Although there has been a shroud on whether the Sony A840 will see a US release, there has been more of a mystery surrounding the new lyrics service.

Unfortunately, we’re not too sure about the feature’s details. Are the lyrics embedded as part of the music file? Does the player come with lyrics for a certain selection of songs? Can lyrics be user-generated? Can they be downloaded?

With that said, a video of the lyric service in action is available displaying lyrics in time with the song. Nope, it doesn’t answer anymore of those beckoning questions.

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Sony has released its latest update to the “Content Transfer” application which is said to seemingly integrate with the likes of both Windows Explorer and the likes of Apple’s iTunes.

Content Transfer includes file drag and drop support with included folder synchronization with the player. To keep those record labels happy, music purchased from the iTunes Store cannot be transferred directly onto the player.

For those of you not familiar with Sony’s Content Transfer, the software application provides users with the ability to transfer and manage files for the Walkman brand of players.

Content Transfer is compatible with all kinds of X-Series Walkman models including the NW-A840 series, NW-S740 series, NW-S640 series, NWD-W202, etc. The application is available on for XP, Vista, and Windows 7.

Now, where’s that support for Mac OSx?

[via MovePlayer | Product Page]

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